Littérature (magazine)

Littérature was a literary magazine edited by André Breton, Philippe Soupault, and Louis Aragon. Its first issue was published on March 19, 1919. Because of dwindling circulation, Breton decided to terminate publication after the August 1921 issue. In March 1922, however, he relaunched the magazine with the cover illustrating a Man Ray drawing of a shiny top hat, and the title, "Littérature: New Series." Breton remained the only one in charge of the review, after the departure of Aragon and Soupault, and to mark the review's change of direction, Breton decided to replace the cover image created by Man Ray with drawings – different each time – by Francis Picabia, to whom he gave carte blanche for each issue. Picabia drew on religious imagery, erotic iconography, and the iconography of games of chance.

In 1923, again because the magazine was not selling enough, Breton decided to limit the publication to special issues, the first of which appeared on October 15, 1923. However, there was only one more of these, in June 1924, before publication ceased altogether.[1]